We hope your interest in Slow Food will motivate you to discover the myriad activities in our local food community. Please email us with information about events, local initiatives or groups meeting on a regular basis which would be of interest to our Slow Food members in Southeast Wisconsin so we may post them on our calendar.
Urban Agriculture Conference Milwaukee: Pollinating Our Future | Feb 28-Mar 1, 2008
Slow Food WiSE joined forces with Michael Fields Agriculture Institute and others in the Milwaukee area to host a successful conference to address urban agriculture in North America. Presenters and participants came from across the U.S. and Canada as well as Kenya, Ghana, Netherlands, and U.K. The partnerships forged in putting on a conference of this scope and magnitude are unprecedented in our food community and included Mitchell Park Domes, Fondy Food Center, Growing Power, Kitchen Table Project, UW Coop Ext, 16th ST Community Health Center, Community Food Security Coalition, City of Milwaukee, Urban Ecology Center together with Slow Food WiSE and Michael Fields.
The purpose of the conference was to promote growing healthful food in cities by bringing together local leaders, urban planners and ecologists, farmers, consumers, chefs, educators and researchers, entrepreneurs and organizations. The creativity and positive action of the group led to success, and Milwaukee will again host the event in 2009.
If this subject is of interest please consider visiting a Milwaukee Urban Ag Network meeting (see our calendar), and watch the website growurban.org for upcoming information.
Milwaukee Food Council
Many areas and cities have begun forming food policy councils in order to address the challenges our present inductrial food system places on society. Food Councils exist to strengthen a local food system while increasing food security for the population at hand. The Milwaukee Food Council is an evolving working group of citizen and government stakeholders from diverse food-related sectors who meet to examine possible strategies for a successful food system in Milwaukee.
Friends of Real Food "EAT LOCAL CHALLENGE" - 2nd week of September
On the National Level
2007 Farm Bill - Extended to April 18, 2008
Collectively, the national farm bill determines who will grow our food, what type of food will be grown, what kind of food we, our children, and those living in poverty will have access to, and how much it will cost us. Because this important bill will determine the overall health of our country's citizens, we all have a personal stake in the outcome.
The 2007 farm bill was extended by Congress to April 18, 2008, giving the House and Senate time to work on funding options. President Bush has stated that he will request a year's extention of the current 2002 bill if it is not submitted for vote by this time.
Phone calls to our legislators, again at this time, are crucial. A number of important programs hang in the balance and/or face significant cuts.
Key items of particular interest include: the reduction of excessive subsidies for crops of corn, soybeans, wheat, cotton and rice; rewards for active farmers who use practices which are environmentally sound (as opposed to those receiving subsidies for not growing on their land); expansion of rural development programs that promote food that is locally grown, processed and marketed; an update of existing anti-trust laws that give large corporations a distinct advantage over local producers; and updated provision allowances that will provide ample support for school lunch programs and food stamps -for which the current allocation is one dollar per meal.
For more information on Farm Bill issues, visit these websites:
- Sustainable Agriculture Coalition
- Farm and Food Policy Project
- Community Food Security Coalition
- National Campaign for Sustainable Agriculture
US Senator Russell Feingold
506 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
202-224-5323
www.feingold.senate.gov/contact_opinion.html
US Senator Herb Kohl
330 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
202-224-5653
www.kohl.senate.gov/gen_contact.html
On the State Level
Buy Local, Buy Wisconsin
PASSED!! Buy Local, Buy Wisconsin envisions a change in the entire state's food procurement reaching a goal of 10% by the year 2010. With around 20 billion dollars a year spent annually on food statewide, this is an effort to keep 2 billion dollars in the Wisconsin economy when food purchases are made at the local level.
Call for Grant Proposals:
Madison - "Secretary of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection Rod Nilsestuer asked for grant proposals to increase local sales and grow the state's economy. The state's first "Buy Local, Buy Wisconsin" grand program will award $225,000 total this year; the maximum grant amount is $50,000. 'We're looking for projects that will help increase Wisconsin producers' share of the dollars spent on food in the state', said Secretary Nilsestuen. Individuals, groups, businesses and organizations involved in Wisconsin agriculture, agri-tourism, retail food establishments or food processing, distribution or warehousing are eligible to apply. Projects need to show how they will stimulate Wisconsin's agricultural economy by increasing the purchase of Wisconsin grown or produced food. Proposals must be received in the Division of Agricultural Development by April 14 at 4:00pm. ...They might range from increasing the processing capacity of smaller processors to developing a local food distribution company or creating an agricultural tourism region to collaborating with other producers on a marketing effort."
The 2008 "Buy Local, Buy Wisconsin" GRANT PROGRAM REQUEST FOR APPLICATION is available online at the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection website , search 'buy local'; or email or call Amy Bruner Zimmerman 608.224.5017 or Lois Federman 608.224.5124.
The grant program was included in the bienniel budget bill approved by Governor Doyle, passed with bipartisan support in the Wisconsin legislature with broad support from farm leaders, food businesses, and non-profit groups.
Wisconsin Local Food Network
Two years of the Wisconsin Local Food Summit have successfully brought together key persons across the state who are on the ground working to make local food systems a reality. A list serve and wiki website have been established to assist anyone interested in these projects. Please visit them at http://wisconsinlocalfood.wetpaint.com
Slow Food embraces local, sustainable agriculture along with a firm commitment to the environment and preserving our resources